Casa Bjork 7.2.4 Atmos home theatre with Vandersteens

[sbjork]

I see that someone else has posted a full 7.2.4 setup using Vandersteens, so it is nice to see other people have taken that particular plunge with the brand.  I took a slightly different approach to the height channels, though, as while mounting VSM-1s on the ceiling is possible it is a bit tricky given their size and weight.  I had to deal with trusses in the ceiling never being quite where I needed them to be.  So I had a brainstorm while I was talking to my dealer: he also carries Gallo Acoustics.   Their orb speakers use a single driver with no crossover network, so they are inherently phase coherent, and they have a ring mount available for ceiling placement.  Plus, the can lighting in my ceiling and vents were all white rings, so the speakers blend right in.  (See the picture of the projector with a vent in front of it and one of the Gallos behind it.)   My setup:

Main channels: Quatros.  Center: VCC-2.  Surrounds: four VSM-1s.  Heights: four Gallo A'Diva SEs.  LFE subwoofers: two HSU ULS-15s.  Processer: Anthem AVM 60.  Amplification: Anthem MCA 325 (main channels) and PVA 8 (surrounds & height.)  Power: Richard Gray 800 RM Pro.  Sources: Oppo UDP 205 and ClearAudio Performance DC with Nano V2 preamp (hidden on a rack outside the room.)  Projector: JVC RS2000 with 110" Screen Innovations Zero Edge screen.  

To maintain phase coherency throughout the system and avoid any extra crossovers, I run all the Vandersteens full range.  I did end up having to compromise with the Gallos as their power handling is too low when they run full range, so I have them crossed over fairly high to keep them safe.  But for the relatively limited kind of information in the height channels, you would never know the difference.

The Quatros ended up a touch closer to the front wall than I would have preferred, so I have DYI acoustical panels behind them, and also panels at the first reflection point from the main listening position (not pictured.)  I also added Blu-ray shelving inside the room along the side walls  and deliberately keep the discs staggered on the shelving so they act as diffusers. 

One silly little point that probably only annoys me: I bought the mains, center, and two of the surrounds for my old 5.1 system at our previous house, and I did something that I swore I would never do: I matched the trim on the speakers to the trim in the room.  Then we moved, and now the maple looks pretty incongruous in the new room.  Live and learn.  The aesthetics in the room are nothing fancy, but most of the money that I spent went to the equipment.  The only things carried forward from the old room were those five speakers plus one of the HSU subs.  Everything else in the audio chain was purchased when I first set up the new room, and let us just say that it was not cheap.  (I actually added the projector & screen a couple of years later as I was waiting for the new generation of JVCs, so at least that expense was spread out a bit.)  We had to finish one wall plus paint & carpet the room as well, so kept all that as simple as possible.  Besides, the lights are never on for very long anyway!

With the exception of the Anthems and the HSUs, everything came from the wonderful Mark at Audio Perfection in Richfield, MN, and his crew handled the arduous task of running the wiring and mounting the equipment into an existing room.  (Just the speakers & wiring alone ended up being a three day project as the trusses and ducts were a nightmare, but somehow his installer miraculously got it done.)  As a lifelong movie buff and music listener, the whole room has been a lifeline during this pandemic.  I miss concerts and seeing movies in the theatre, but this at least keeps me sane in the meantime.  

 

 

[ctsooner]

What a great set up.  Thanks for sharing.  Love that TT.  Really miss having one in the system.

[sbjork]

5 hours ago, ctsooner said:

What a great set up.  Thanks for sharing.  Love that TT.  Really miss having one in the system.

Thanks!  I thought that the room itself simply would not allow me to have one, but opting for having it outside the room has worked fine.  Bit of a long run for a single ended cable, but it has not been an issue.  

[ctsooner]

Great to hear. Even if you had it in the room , there are ways around vibrations lol. I love having the table in another room. 

[Steve Edwards]

Awesome system!  I would love to have just one of those chairs!

[ctsooner]

I'd fall asleep if I did, lol.  :). Love a comfy chair for my TV!!!  Ha

[sbjork]

On 11/9/2020 at 5:56 PM, ctsooner said:

Great to hear. Even if you had it in the room , there are ways around vibrations lol. I love having the table in another room. 

It was not so much the vibrations as simply having no room for a separate rack for the turntable inside the room.  As you can see from the pictures of my equipment rack, it could not go on top of that without blocking the  center channel.  As it is, I had to mount that pretty low to the top the rack, which is why I have some dampening material covering the top shelf. 

[sbjork]

7 hours ago, Steve Edwards said:

Awesome system!  I would love to have just one of those chairs!

 Along with the Quatoros, those chairs were the least fun thing to get into the room.  It is in the basement with a double flight of stairs and a 180° turn on a landing in the middle.  The Quatros are just brutally heavy and fragile, but those chairs were no fun getting around the corner and then through the doorway into the room.  I did cheap out and get ones that are not motorized, since that would have added a lot of money that I preferred to  put that toward the audio & video.  But when we were hauling them downstairs, I realized that I really dodged a bullet there!

[ctsooner]

Wow, too bad you didn't have a large door in the basement.  They had to bring my Quatro's up a flight of stairs and it was brutal to even watch.  

[Steve Edwards]

Yes, caution must be taken when moving Quatros around.  As soon as my Vandy spike footers arrive, I'll be calling my brother to come over and assist.  This time, I'll have him lay on the floor with them in hand, while I tilt each speaker, one cone / spike at a time, to replace the existing gliders.  

[sbjork]

3 hours ago, Steve Edwards said:

Yes, caution must be taken when moving Quatros around.  As soon as my Vandy spike footers arrive, I'll be calling my brother to come over and assist.  This time, I'll have him lay on the floor with them in hand, while I tilt each speaker, one cone / spike at a time, to replace the existing gliders.  

We had moved two blocks from our previous house so I had them completely packed up in their original packaging.  We took them downstairs before I unboxed them.